of office
was concerned, and removable only by the King.

They therefore arrayed themselves solidly against Altamarino, and
rallied to the opposition the councils of the other municipalities and
many of the principal men throughout the island. Altamarino replied by
trumping up charges against several of the life councillors, of having
expended public funds without authorization, and suspended them from
their functions, or attempted to do so. He certainly could not remove
them outright, and there was much question of his right to suspend them,
unless during actual trial in court. The Guzmans and their allies
retorted by obtaining from the court at Hispaniola an injunction
restraining Altamarino from attending meetings of the Council, so that
he would not know whether the suspended members continued their
functions or not. Against this the Governor furiously protested,
declaring that his predecessors had habitually attended all Council
meetings, and he issued an order forbidding the Council of Santiago to
transact any business whatever or indeed to meet officially, in his
absence. Of course this brought matters to an impasse, which could be
solved only through appeal to the King. This was made, and resulted in a
royal decision in favor of the Councils, confirming the injunction of
the Hispaniola tribunal against the Governor's intrusion into council
meetings.

This, in the early autumn of 1525, was obviously the beginning of the
end for Altamarino. A little later, in October of that year, the
various municipal councils of the island united in sending Rodrigo Duran
to Hispaniola, to prefer to the court there charges against Altamarino
of a most serious character. They were indeed tantamount to his
impeachment and a demand for his removal from the Governorship. The
court hesitated to take action so radical, but considered the charges
sufficiently important to warrant reference to the King. The result was
that the King promptly decided against the Governor. Less than nine
months after his actual assumption of office, and little more than a
year and a half after his appointment to it, Altamarino was summarily
removed from the place to which he had been appointed for two years.

Immediately after this, at the beginning of December, 1525, Altamarino's
chief antagonist, Gonzalo de Guzman, a life Councillor of Santiago, was
appointed to succeed him as Governor, and also as Repartidor of the
natives, with all the plenary autho